Centuries are looking at you!
The Carolingian, Romanesque and Gothic eras have left sumptuous traces in Côte-d'Or, some of them unique in the world. Just like the Cistercian art created by the monks. In addition to the splendid abbeys of Cîteaux and Fontenay, the Sainte-Bénigne abbey in Dijon, for example, now houses an archaeology museum. Restored in 989 by Guillaume de Volpiano (an Italian from Cluny who was both an architect and a man of faith), it was transformed into a gigantic church extended by a 3-storey rotunda with over 100 columns. Other examples include the abbey of Sainte-Reine in Flavigny-sur-Ozerain and the church of Sainte-Vorles in Châtillon-sur-Seine. On the Gothic side, Dijon boasts Sainte-Bénigne cathedral, the Chartreuse de Champmol and Notre-Dame church. Further afield are Saint-Nicolas de Châtillon-sur-Seine, Saint-Genest de Flavigny-sur-Ozerain, the Abbey of Sainte-Seine and Auxonne. In addition to this first-rate religious architecture, the Middle Ages also saw the flourishing of some superb buildings. These include Châteauneuf, La Rochepot, Mont-Saint-Jean, Thoisy-La-Berchère, Antigny-la-Ville and Montbard. And, of course, the fortifications of Semur-en-Auxois. Then, under the Renaissance, wooden houses appeared, along with stone mansions and some castles. These included the church of Saint-Michel and the courthouse in Dijon, the Philandrier house in Châtillon-sur-Seine, the Hôtel de la Mare in Beaune, the old houses of Flavigny-sur-Ozerain and Seurre, and the châteaux of Bussy-le-Grand and Époisses.
Glazed tiles, a gift from the Dukes to Burgundy
This was followed by the classical art of Versailles, expressed in Dijon's Place Royale (today's Place de la Libération), as well as in the construction of the Palais des États de Bourgogne. It was during this period, governed by the Dukes of Burgundy, that many of the townhouses that can still be seen in Beaune and Dijon were built. Above all, it was also during this era that the famous roofs decorated with colorful geometric motifs appeared, a feature that still characterizes Burgundian architecture in the minds of those who discover it. Yellow, green, red, black, brown and gold, these glazed terracotta tiles adorn the roofs of many buildings along the route des grands crus. Among them, it's impossible to overlook the Hôtel-Dieu des Hospices de Beaune. It's famous the world over! But let's not forget the Hôtel de Vogüé and the Sainte-Bénigne Cathedral in Dijon, the Château de la Rochepot and the Hôtel de Ville in Meursault.
A rich world heritage
Burgundy-Franche-Comté is the French region with the most Unesco World Heritage sites. Two of these are in the Côte-d'Or. Fontenay Abbey is the oldest preserved Cistercian abbey in the world. Founded in 1118 by Saint Bernard de Clairvaux, the building was classified as a historic monument as soon as it was listed in 1862. Further south, the second listed Côte-d'Or site enjoys a reputation and prestige that extends around the world: the climats du vignoble de Bourgogne. Nothing to do here with the weather: Burgundy's climats are parcels of vines that have been precisely delimited and so named for centuries. Each of the 1,247 climats, though located next to one another, produces a wine with a unique taste, and this astonishing mosaic has given rise to a rich heritage that can be discovered in the Côtes de Beaune and Nuits-Saint-Georges regions, as well as in the wine-producing villages from the Dijon area to south of Beaune.
Burgundy stones and lava mark the region
As France's leading quarrying region for natural limestone, Burgundy has long been home to a wealth of expertise in the stone and ornamental rock trades. Whether from the quarries of Ampilly-le-Sec, Coulmier-le-Sec or Magny-lès-Villers, among others, some 83 varieties of Burgundy stone are referenced throughout the region, spread over 5 main basins, including those of the Châtillonnais and Côte (between Beaune and Dijon). These basins provided the materials that today give the département a particularly rich heritage. These include the Abbey of Fontenay, the Château du Clos de Vougeot and its old village. The old town of Beaune, too, and the historic centers of Nuits-Saint-Georges and Gevrey-Chambertin. Not forgetting Pommard, Meursault, Châteauneuf-en-Auxois, Châtillon-sur-Seine and its museum, or the gateway to the medieval city of Semur-en-Auxois. Finally, don't miss the many vaulted cellars that can be visited in the wine villages. Most of them are magnificent examples of the Burgundy stone buildings of yesteryear.
Some (very) surprising sites
Founded in 1982, La Maison de l'Architecture de Bourgogne (MAB) is an association under the French law of 1901 that brings together all those involved in architecture and construction. Its aim is to promote contemporary architectural culture through tours, conferences, exhibitions, publications and on-site meetings. Like the "Fantastic Picnic" organized in 2020. Or when MAB invited the public to visit the astonishing Domaine de la Pierre Ronde, on the shores of Lac de Chamboux in Saint-Martin-de-Mer, in the Morvan region of the Côte-d'Orien. In 2016, Yannick Boisfard and Gaëlle Lajugée launched a crowdfunding campaign on the internet to create a village around the world of Tolkien. The 25-hectare village was a resounding success, offering accommodation in the homes of hobbits, elves and wizards. The men and women who built it were on hand to share the secrets of their wild adventure with the curious. Nearby, in Saulieu, André Wogenscky's Maison Bandelier celebrates the first project by the architect who was Le Corbusier's first collaborator. The Cité internationale de la gastronomie et du vin in Dijon was built on the site of the Hôtel Dieu, a first transformation of places of memory and the construction of an innovative part like a cannon of light, made mainly of Corten steel. The Cité des climats et vins de Bourgogne in Beaune is an innovative structure inspired by the vine's tendril, which winds around the trellising wire, evoking perpetual motion. The Cité rises to a height of 21m, offering a view of the Beaune winegrowing coast. The Côte-d'Or, with its rich history, is also a land of the avant-garde!
